Motorola walkies...FCC license really necessary?

[nickwec]

Since my school is gearing up for our winter musical (the biggest production of the year!) the tech department is looking into picking up some walkie talkies (probably Motorola CP200s) to strengthen our backstage communication beyond the decrepit clearcom system...

The CP200s that we're buying operate in the UHF band, and the Motorola website says that we'd need to purchase a $75/5 yr. license from the FCC to use these "business radio" frequencies. My question is: does it really matter? Even though we'd be technically breaking the law, would the FCC fine for a relatively low-use (< once a month) set of transmissions, in a non-urban area?

We'll probably end up paying the licensing fee just to be safe, but I'm just wondering if there's any wiggle room.

(On a separate note, what have your experiences using these radios, or similar models, been like?)

 

[Footer]

Pay the fee. 75 bucks is really just the registration fee so your frequency's don't get used by someone else in the area. Pay the fee. There is no wiggle room.

 

[SteveB]

Not sure the dealer you purchase from will sell if you don't buy the license as you need to get a frequency (s) assigned, that isn't in conflict with others in the area, if memory serves.

 

[themuzicman]

CP200's are standard radio's on work sites and in theaters, they are pretty fantastic devices.

Now about the license -- get it, but it's not as inexpensive as you think. The cost is $105/10 years and you need to pick someone on the FCC's list of accredited frequency coordinators to walk you through the licensing process -- those people are an additional cost. You'll end up paying about $500-$600 when you are all said and done to properly license your radios. If you rent them, you don't have to deal with any of that and you get a maintenance contract on the walkies. I see you're in New Jersey -- Gotham Sound in NYC and Masque Sound and PRG in New Jersey rent CP200 walkies that are already licensed.

You want the license -- I know every time I encounter an unlicensed user on the wrong service I report them to the proper authorities.

SteveB -- The dealer has no requirement to ensure they are licensed before they sell them to you. It is fully on the end-user to ensure things are kosher with the government.

 

[venuetech]

You may want to check with the school maintenance department, many school districts use such radios for daily operations. you will want to at least make sure that the freq. is coordinated with other school district radios. with luck they may be able to let you ride on their licence.
The hardest part will be finding just who within your school district to talk with about it.

 

[MNicolai]

Alternatively, you could resuscitate your Clearcom system. What seems to be the issue with it? Faulty base station? Aging belt packs? Intermittent failures in connectivity?

 

[danTt]

I wouldn't reccomend trying to replace a clearcom system with radios. The lack of duplex functionality means people will probably step all over each other frequently.

 

[venuetech]

the decrepit clearcom system...

Your best value would be continued investment in your com system. It is money well spent.
replace old headsets, repair or replace beltpacks. set some time aside to give the system TLC.

 

[nickwec]

Okay to all, will get an FCC license. We're a private school and therefore are not part of a district, but I'll definitely contact maintenance to see if we can piggyback on their radio system.

Thanks-- a great help as always.

 

[rochem]

I second the idea to rent them. Realistically, you'll only need them for a few weeks out of the year (maybe 2 weeks per production, if that), and renting radios in this neck of the woods is dirt cheap. The big audio shops (Masque, PRG, Sound Associates, etc.) all carry them, but we also use a company called Hello World Communications for lots of corporate stuff here in the city. They'll also throw in fist mics and/or in-ear surveillance kits so that you don't have radios squawking backstage. Once you factor in keeping them from walking away, maintenance and repair, the FCC license, storage, plus the cost of accessories like charging stations and earpiece kits, I think you'll find it significantly cheaper to just rent as-needed.

 

[SteveB]

SteveB -- The dealer has no requirement to ensure they are licensed before they sell them to you. It is fully on the end-user to ensure things are kosher with the government.

I think (at the time) our dealer was a State contractor, who also did the licensing routine. And as we are a state agency had to go this route. Thus we were not in a position to say "no thanks, we'll get the license ourselves". My ITS guy thinks this has changed since we last purchased.

 

[tdeater]

i am glad to see you are going the route for the license. In the long run, that is the best way to go and sounds like you are on the right path. If your school has any licensed frequencies, that would be a great way to go. With PL codes, you can limit who can hear what on the same frequency. (but each group can not talk at the same time)

For the good of everyone else reading:
A possibility is the MURS (Multi-Use Radio Service) band. There are 5 channels available in the VHF band. I think a VHF CP200 could be programmed to the 2 watt limit and bandwidth limitations of that band. There are also radios that work in the 900MHz band, but not CP200's. I do not know of any license free UHF frequencies you can use with a CP200. The radio will take FRS channels, but it does not meet the technical requirements for that band and by the wording of FRS, can not be used for business. GMRS requires licenses.

In reality, the odds of being caught are pretty slim, but the risks are huge. Like $$$$$ per transmission fines, or even worse, interfering with somebody else resulting in bad stuff. I used to be on our Sheriff Dept's reserves, and we constantly had interference to our radios while we were in a certain city. We traced it back to a big chain store who were using our frequency for their radios without a license or authorization. They randomly chose a frequency that happened to be ours. They worked with us to fix the issue though, so mostly an education opportunity for them.

According to the FCC, a dealer can not program a channel into a radio without proof of authorization. (FCC license, license holder OK, or something) I have found the court case where the FCC came back on a dealer who provided radios without a license. Most dealers I have encountered will leave it up to you to figure that out though.